Authors: michael conrad

If you want to indicate something is “less” or “least” it is common to use the words “ᎦᏲᏟᎨᎢ” (smaller) and “ᏫᎦᏲᏢᎢ” (smallest).

• Ꮒ- + Ꮥ- becomes ᏂᏗ-

☞ The Ꮒ- prefix can indicate “next to the speaker’s point of reference in a lateral position”.

In the “Cherokee-English Dictionary”, this point of reference is called “the speaker’s position”.

In the “A Reference Grammar of Oklahoma Cherokee”, this point of reference is called “the deictic center”.

In many cases the prefix “nị-” is used to indicate “beside” or “next to”.

Assume the point of reference is in relation to the speaker unless context indicates otherwise.

This is used to refer to the point of time just before an event.

Use the Immediate Future suffix “-ᎢᏕᎾ” and “Set B” pronoun prefixes on the Past Tense form.

The Leitner system is a widely used method to efficiently use flashcards that was proposed by the German science journalist Sebastian Leitner in the 1970s. It is a simple implementation of the principle of spaced repetition, where cards are reviewed at increasing interval.

ᏘᎪᎵᏯ (Read them)

• Ꭷ
  [ka] “Hey now! Enough already! Hey!” ☞ Also used as a greeting to indicate a “Hey!” kind of “Hi!”.

• ᏄᎳ
  [nu⁴la] “Hurry.”

• ᎢᏯᏂ
  [ị²yạ³ni] “Count of animate.”

• ᎢᎦ
  [i²³ga⁴] “Count of inanimate.”

• ᎦᏍᎩᎸᎢ
  [ga²sgị²lv⁴ɂi] “On a chair or on a table.”

• ᏂᎦᏓ, ᏂᎦᏛ
  [nị²ga⁴da, nị²ga⁴dv] “All. Everyone.”

• ᎤᎵᏑᏫᏓ
  [ul²su²³hwị²da] “Color.”

  • ᎤᎾᎵᏑᏫᏓ
    [u²nal²su²³hwị²da] “Color (them-animate).”

  • ᏧᎵᏑᏫᏓ
    [jul²su²³hwị²da] “Color (them-inanimate).”

ᎦᏬᏂᏍᎬᎢ ᎠᎦᏔᎲᎢ (Grammar)

☞ Remember that it is through the exercises in the lesson material that you will learn how to understand and speak Cherokee, not by memorizing rules and word parts.

Cherokee word ordering works differently than English word ordering. In simple sentences the subject of the sentence comes first, followed by the object and its modifiers, and finally by the verb and its modifiers. This results in what is called a “subject-object-verb” word order. This can be seen in the following example:

ᎦᏬᏂᏍᎬᎢ ᎠᎦᏔᎲᎢ (Grammar)

☞ Remember that it is through the exercises in the lesson material that you will learn how to understand and speak Cherokee, not by memorizing rules and word parts.

The Cherokee words for “is”, “was”, and “will be” work a little differently than they do in English. The words have special forms to indicate just now, now and on going, usually, a while ago, first hand knowledge, and second hand knowledge.

The special first hand and second hand knowledge forms will be indicated by references to “with personal knowledge” and “without personal knowledge”. “With personal knowledge” indicates being a first hand witness. “Without personal knowledge” indicates being told something by someone else making your information second hand.

☞ In some materials you will see these words grouped together as one and referred to as “the copula”.

ᎦᏬᏂᏍᎬᎢ ᎠᎦᏔᎲᎢ (Grammar)

☞ Remember that it is through the exercises in the lesson material that you will learn how to understand and speak Cherokee, not by memorizing rules and word parts.

The following two new bound pronouns are used in this lesson.

• They … me.

  • ᎬᎩ̣-, ᎬᏆ͓- (gv²gị-, gv²gw-)

• They … you.

  • ᎨᏣ̣- (ge²jạ-)